A Kinda Sorta Cinderella Story
by Laureen
Summary: Harry tries an obscure spell to get Draco's attention. HPDM SLASH


Title: A Kinda Sorta Cinderella Story

Fandom: Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry/Draco (do I ever write anything but?)

Word Count: 2,246

Rating: PG-13, maybe?

Warning: Slash. Genderfuckery. Slight crackery.

Disclaimer: So, the boys aren't mine (which is a pity, because if they were? They'd totally be doing it. On a stage. So I could watch. ).

Summary: Harry tries an obscure spell to get Draco's attention.

If he'd fussed with his hair a few moments longer than necessary, it was only because the cut was new and he hadn't gotten used to it yet. Well, okay, that was an understatement. The truth was the entire body was new, thanks to an obscure charm Harry had found in with some of his mum's old spell books. He hadn't been surprised to learn that not only had his mum been skilled with charms, but she'd also been skilled with creating her own spells. Although why she had needed a spell to temporarily turn a man into a woman was beyond Harry.

When Harry had found the spell it had been the answer to his problem with Draco Malfoy. He had fallen for the Slytherin in fifth year, and had been insulted to see that Draco wouldn't even look twice at him, no matter what he did. Even after following Draco around for all of his sixth year, and driving Myrtle crazy as he moaned about how blond Draco's hair was, and how soft it looked, and how much he wanted to kiss the Slytherin… Well, suffice it to say that Myrtle had stopped listening to him a while ago. It seemed that even though Myrtle was dead she had still held out hope that Harry would love her instead. Shame, that was.

Remus had been the one to give Harry the spell books. It was a Birthday/Congratulations-on-Killing-He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named gift. Harry had laughed when he found the horcruxes patiently awaiting in Grimmauld Place. The false locket had set off a set of spells--rather like Dominoes, Harry thought privately--that had revealed Regulus Black had been the culprit who had stolen the original locket from Voldemort, as well as a host of others. It appeared he had been intending to destroy them, but sadly, destroying the locket had taken all of Regulus's magical energy, which had proved to be his downfall. And Voldemort's, because shortly after discovering the hidden cache of horcruxes, Harry had stormed off to kill Voldemort.

The actual killing was not what had been expected, and really, had no bearing on just what Harry was doing casting charms to change his sex. No, the fact was that after Voldemort's death, Harry and the rest of the student's at Hogwarts prepared for yet another year of school, this time free of Voldemort's threat. Instead, McGonagall had taken over as Headmistress, and Snape had returned to teach Potions--apparently, teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts had annoyed him even more than teaching Potions had, and he was grateful to have his old position once again--and Remus came back to teach Defense--again.

It was almost expected that there would be a celebration when school started, and so Harry had taken the time to read through the spell books from Remus. He had, originally, been looking for something that would change his appearance slightly, just enough that no one would recognize him because he wanted at least one night where he didn't have to be The Savior, or The Chosen One. Instead he had found the sex-changing spell, and immediately realized that the spell could be the way to solve his problem with Draco.

He hadn't expected that he would be beautiful. Harry's featured had softened, became more feminine, and he had Accio'd Hermione's makeup bag to line his emerald eyes with kohl, sweep some mascara on his lashes, and added a touch of gloss to his lips. Hermione had been the only one to know what Harry had intended, and had shown him how to apply makeup earlier that afternoon. All the same, he didn't want to add too much makeup in case he ended up looking like a clown. Instead, the mascara and kohl made his eyes stand out, and the gloss made his lips seem so kissable. Harry hoped Draco would want to kiss him, or at least would notice him. Transfiguring his robes into a dress he had seen in a high-end Muggle boutique that summer while shopping with Hermione, Harry nodded at himself in the mirror, touching the shoulder length hair that somehow, as a woman, laid flat.

Ready for the celebration ball, Harry swung his invisibility cloak around his shoulders and snuck down to the great hall, where everyone was already dancing. It was hard to believe the war had only ended by the way that everyone seemed to be getting along, and while Harry was not going to hold his breath in hopes of it continuing, he wasn't opposed to it. Headmistress McGonagall had known that Harry did not want to make a speech, and as such, she had gotten the ball rolling, and people were dancing and having a great time. Harry smiled to himself as he secreted his cloak behind one of the statues and made his way into the hall. People glanced his way, but there was no awkward silence, and no one was coming up to him to either thank him, or hex him, and for the first time Harry felt the tension in his shoulders dissipating.

That is until he felt Draco Malfoy watching him. Harry turned, his eyes meeting Draco's and he smiled before turning away to get a glass of punch, trying to force his heart to slow down. This was the best spell I have ever learned, Harry thought to himself, grinning as he took a sip of his drink. Draco noticed me. He was almost certain he would squeal like the girl he was pretending to be if he couldn't get a hold of himself, and slowly Harry turned to look at Draco again. He was saddened to note that Draco was no longer standing against the wall where h had seen him earlier that night, and sighing softly, he could feel his heart breaking. Maybe Draco hadn't noticed him after all…

Or so Harry thought, until he felt a hand touch his shoulder, and he whirled, skirt flaring dramatically around him. "Oh. Hello," he stammered, blushing prettily. Draco held out a hand, and Harry paused a moment before slipping his slimmer, much more feminine, hand in the semblance of a handshake. He was surprised when Draco lifted his hand to his mouth and kissed the back gently.

"I'm Draco Malfoy. And who might you be? I'm sure I've never seen you around here before." Draco's voice was smooth, and sensual, and Harry was certain that if he still had a cock it would be hard by now; instead, he was pretty sure his knickers were getting wet.

"I'm Halle… Granger." Harry groaned inwardly at the pause between names. Halle sounded enough like Harry that Hermione and he had agreed it would be appropriate, and they had decided to use Hermione's last name and state that Halle was a distant cousin who had shown some magical talent, just not enough to be accepted to a school like Hogwarts. Draco's lips twisted slightly, and Harry bit his lip, hoping that it didn't mean Draco wasn't interested in him... her. Whichever.

"Of relation to Hermione Granger, I assume," Draco continued smoothly, releasing Harry's hand and smiling as he gently placed his hand on his lower back, causing Harry to gasp at the warmth, while Draco began guiding him towards the dance floor. "Would you do me the honour of dancing with me, Halle?"

Harry glanced around the room, but when he noticed that no one was looking their way, he nodded, smiling up at Draco. "It would be my pleasure to dance, but, I..." Harry blushed, remembering the last time he had danced in this room. "I'm afraid I don't dance very well."

The look Draco shot Harry was puzzling, but before Harry could reflect on what it meant he was swept into Draco's arms, the scent of vanilla and cinnamon clouding around him, forcing a small whimper from his lips. "Then let me lead you." Draco guided Harry's hands into the correct position, and smiled down at him as he began moving, gently guiding Harry through the steps.

Slowly, Harry allowed himself to be pulled closer into Draco's arms, sighing happily as he rested his head against Draco's shoulder, breathing him in, trying to savour every moment. A small part of Harry was keeping track of the time, knowing the charm was not intended for long term use, and knowing that it would expire before the end of the night, but wanting to just spend this moment in time here with Draco.

The rest of Harry was completely focused on Draco, on the way he smelled, the way he moved, even the rhythmic sound of his heartbeat. And this was the part of Harry that was slowly shattering and coming apart, because he knew that this was only a spell, and he was no Cinderella, he wouldn't get his Slytherin Prince in the end.

"Halle?" Draco's voice broke through Harry's musing and he lifted his head slightly to look into Draco's grey eyes, hoping his own didn't betray the sorrow he was feeling. "You look so beautiful, so right," Draco continued, bending his head forward to brush his lips against Harry's. His lips continued to move, soft whispers that Harry couldn't make out over the sound of the blood rushing through his body.

Harry opened his eyes, blinking against the bright lights, surprised to find that he had closed them at all. Beyond Draco's shoulder he caught a glimpse of Hermione's dress, and his heart clenched painfully. Hermione was dancing with Ron, and by the end of the night Harry knew she would be wearing a new ring. And while Harry was happy, thrilled for his friends, he couldn't help but hurt for himself. A lone tear spilled down his cheek, and he blinked once more, hoping the act would banish any more tears remaining.

There was the sensation of velvet wiping away the tear on Harry's cheek, and he looked back at Draco, his eyes darting to look at the dampness of Draco's lips before lifting his eyes to meet Draco's once more. "Halle, what's wrong?" Harry stumbled backwards at the gentle tone of Draco's voice, struggling against his anger—Draco would never speak so gently to Harry Potter, but to Halle Granger, a filthy mudblood, Draco would be so kind? "Halle?" Draco reached for Harry, frowning.

"I... I have to go, Draco. I'm sorry." With that, Harry turned and ran, stopping only to grab his cloak and wrap it around himself as soon as he was out of sight. Then, he made his way back to Gryffindor tower, his vision blurred behind the contacts and the tears. He was halfway back to his room when the charm faded, and Harry laughed, the sound bitter and hollow in the hallway. It seemed the charm had run out sooner than expected, or Harry had lost track of time. Either way, it seemed it was a good thing he had run when he had.

Morning brought fresh tears to Harry's eyes when he looked in the mirror, seeing streaks of kohl and mascara ringing his eyes. The black still brought out the green in his eyes, but instead of the vibrancy of last night, his eyes were dull behind the cloud of tears, and it only served as a reminder of what he would never have. Shaking his head, Harry scrubbed at his face, splashing cool water in a bid to reduce the lines of red in his eyes. The only good part of the morning was that he had managed to sleep in enough that the rest of the boys had already gone down for breakfast, and so Harry had the dorm to himself.

After throwing on a set of robes, and running a comb through his hair, Harry decided to go down to breakfast and at least make an attempt at eating something. He was just exiting the common room when he was spun around, back slamming against the stone wall beside the portrait, causing the Fat Lady to gasp in indignation. When he opened his eyes, he blanched, recognizing the steel grey eyes that met his own. "D—Malfoy. What do you want?" Harry muttered.

"You left me last night, Halle.' Draco snarled, hand fisting in Harry's hair, "after I begged you to stay with me. What was that, some kind of joke you and your friends were playing on me?" He leaned down, biting at Harry's lower lip before running his tongue over it. "Did you think I wouldn't know your eyes, Potter? That I wouldn't know your lips or the way you say my name?"

"You... you knew it was me?" Harry groaned, wrapping his arms around Draco and pulling him tight against him. "And you wanted me to stay?" Harry flicked his tongue out, touching Draco's lightly before pulling away, savouring the taste and yearning for more.

"I've been out here all bloody night waiting for you, waiting to do this, Harry," Draco dipped his head forward and kissed Harry gently, sliding his hand from Harry's hair to gently cradle his cheek, lips gliding smoothly over lips. "Harry, my Harry..." Draco whispered, kissing him again. "Stay with me. Don't go running away this time..."

Harry hummed, pulling away from the kiss to rest his head against Draco's shoulder, closing his eyes. "Always, Draco." Harry smiled to himself, twisting his head to kiss Draco's jaw gently. Perhaps he was a little bit like Cinderella after all.


End file.
